Sunday, March 29, 2009

"It was a very, very good match for me. I feel great after this fight. I think that was the most important for me because I was always down, first set, second set, and then in the tie-break. I just hung in there, and things were good for me at the end. I was really, really happy."--Gisela Dulko on upsetting No. 3 seed and 2008 runner-up Jelena Jankovic

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comments:

Wonderful result! So happy for her... Although I hope JJ doesn't revert to her early 2006 mindset...

When I saw Dulko play Serena earlier this year I really wondered why she hadn't had more big wins on the tour. And why her ranking wasn't a whole lot higher.... I believe Dulko lost in straight sets but she really really fought Serena and it was a great match. I believe Savannah commented on the same thing... that if she played like that all the time she wouldn't be known primarily as an ATP girlfriend....

A la Canas - this is a great tournament for Latin American upsets - they have lots of crowd support..... Venus please beware...

Hopefully this won't become another thread despairing of the state of the WTA/Women's Tennis... As far as I can see, the only real problems in that area are almost entirely if not entirely due to 1- western media 2- people's minds 3- Larry Scott and other WTA administration

Please remember when WTA did have someone (Justine) playing and winning a lot, and when the top 4 seeds would usually make the semis - there were endless complaints about how shallow the tour was, woeful lack of depth, no-one able to challenge etc etc etc Now that we have

Few of the women's upsets are really that surpring for people who have been following their careers/results. Tt is not these women's fault that the great Larry Scott decided to pour all his attention and effort into promoting Sharapova (both on and off court) and choosing to look for "sexy" players/promotions, rather than basing his promotions and publicity on talent...

Nadal gave the #4 player a total beat down in the IW final - and he is (deservedly_ praised for his talent and efforts..... No one chuntered about the state of Men's Tennis.... how the #2 and #3 players (including the supposed GOAT) and the American Hope (Roddick) were dismissed so definitively from the tournament... Or how some, including Nalby, completely folded when they needed to take a stand... As far as I could tell the Women's final was far more exciting, despite the wind being worse... No-one suggested paying Nadal less because of the quality of his opponent/ the match.

If Nadal does it again in Miami - the admiration will continue. If Serena wins this tournament with a 6-1, 6-2 we can only look forward to endless moaning about the state of Women's Tennis and equal pay.... rather than respecting and admiring the Women's accomplishments.

For My part I'm really grateful that many/most of the current women, especially younger players, don't seem to be taking locker room rankings/pecking order out onto the court with them when they play....

Personally, I long for the days when ALL the seeds met in the later rounds. I like the up and coming players but Stosur and Dulko aren't new to the tour. Dulko still looks like she needs a ham sandwich and a can of Ensure. (just my opinion)

Dinara, Jelena and Ana losing early is not a good thing because it wasn't due to an inspired performance. It was their lackluster game at that moment in time.

The ATP is a steadier tour by far, but that doesn't mean that the WTA should be disrespected because of it's instability at the moment. It's a growing process, and new players will emerge as the veterans leave and the others settle in their roles.

I, for one, have been calling the men's tour weak for years. It's improved somewhat, but there are still far too many headcases among the top players.

Far too many.

But at the end of the day, the matches tend to be more competitive and the mental walkabouts not as stark.

I would also say that while Andy Roddick lost to Rafa in straight sests, there was nothing definitively dismissive about it. Even though I only saw a few games, I did see the match from 3-5 in the second set till the end. It was very competitive and a winnable matchup for Andy on this surface. I'm not at all ready to say he won't ever beat Rafa again as I've said for some time now that he'll never beat Raja again.

All that said, the WTA sucks. And it sucks for all the reasons you outline and then some.

It's like a tour full of scarecrows and while I suppose that can be entertaining to watch, consider me the crow who turns away.

Hi Pamela - I don't have a problem w- someone preferring to see all the top seeds survive t end.... my point is that when that was happening (2006-2007?) it was continually cited in media as an example of the inherent "weakness" - presumably b/c the the men's 3-6 spots were shuffling alot - of the WTA..... and a reason why it was not worth watching and also why they did not deserve appropriate compensation....

That's my problem - a determination to denigrate WTA for any reason unless - it is a carbon copy of men's game and they are willing to accept less $$ for their efforts..

I would be fine right now if we had the game you liked (all 4 tops seeds reliable) as long as media stopped bashing the tour....

Oh yes I know Dulko's been around for a while... didn't mean to use her as an example of a newer player.... I didn't realise Stosur knocked out Safina until just now... I did some googling. I actually really like Safina and her game but is it wrong for me to be happy that Serena has a greater opportunity to stay #1 now? :o) (whoopeee!) wow... I didn't know Ana crashed out either either.... but I love Szavay and this is not a surprise to me.... Love it, only wish they could have hitched Roger along with them.....

oddman - thx... also I didn't mean to imply that no-one mentioned Nalby's performance but the fact that his failure (or Roger's, Murray's Roddick's etc etc) to give a good match and put up a good fight at a critical time wasn't used to somehow pull down the entire ATP and/or bemoan the state of men's tennis as a whole...

JJ and Djok are(or were) both #3. When Djoke loses early, he loses early and people dump on him but not on Men's Tennis or the ATP as a whole.... JJ is also #3 and you can be sure every early loss is a statement on how women's tennis "is a joke" and how the tour is in an emergency if the #3 player can't make it etc etc.... ditto for Ana....

People tend to forget about Marcelo Rios - he was #1 w-out winning a slam and retired that way.... JJ (can say the same for Ana) has not been at the top for long enough for people to speculate on whether she's capable of winning a slam or not.... and for pretty much all of 2007 thru beg 2008 she was always seeded with Henin.

Is it a little clearer now what's bothering me? Sorry for such rambling replies....

Hopefully this won't become another thread despairing of the state of the WTA/Women's Tennis... As far as I can see, the only real problems in that area are almost entirely if not entirely due to 1- western media 2- people's minds 3- Larry Scott and other WTA administration=======================

Your three points are correct b but the fact still remains that the quality of tennis is not high. Until that changes - and that would require the women not playing cookie cutter games, hit hard, harder and flat - the criticism will continue.

The WTA will always be critiqued as a lesser brand than the ATP. I don't care what happens, or who wins or maintains the ranking. That's just the way it has always been.

B, I'm with you. I like Dinara (not really her game) but I'm glad she lost and Serena has a greater chance of retaining the #1 spot. She can't gain any points until Marbella, since she won Miami and Charleston last year.

But seriously people, Ana, Dinara and Jelena are all out already? That's pretty pathetic. Oh, and Vera who won Indian .. PNB Paribas Open also just lost.